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Photography and Videography Policy

 

The purpose of this policy statement is to:

 

• protect children and young people who take part in Michelle’s Swim Star services, events and activities, specifically those where photographs and videos may be taken

 

• set out the overarching principles that guide our approach to photographs/videos being taken of children and young people during our events and activities

 

• to ensure that we operate in line with our values and within the law when creating, using and sharing images of children and young people.

 

This policy statement applies to all staff, volunteers and other adults associated with Michelle’s Swim Stars.

 

 

We believe that:

 

• children and young people should never experience abuse of any kind

 

• we have a responsibility to promote the welfare of all children and young people and to take, share and use images of children safely.

 

We recognise that:

 

• sharing photographs and films of our activities can help us celebrate the successes and achievements of our children and young people, provide a record of our activities and raise awareness of our organisation

 

• the welfare of the children and young people taking part in our activities is paramount

 

• children, their parents and carers have a right to decide whether their images are taken and how these may be used, regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation

 

• consent to take images of children is only meaningful when children, their parents and carers understand how the images will be used and stored, and are fully aware of the potential risks associated with the use and distribution of these images

 

• there are potential risks associated with sharing images of children online.

 

 

We will seek to keep children and young people safe by:

 

• always asking for consent from a child and written consent from their parents or carers before taking and using a child’s image.  This is done via ClassForKids but we will also ask verbal consent from the child and parent or adult who is with the child at lessons, before we use a particular photo or video. 

 

• always explaining what images will be used for, how they will be stored and what potential risks are associated with sharing images of children

 

• making it clear that if a child or their family withdraw consent for an image to be shared, it may not be possible to delete images that have already been shared or published

 

• only using first name of the child if we do need to identify them

 

• never publishing personal information about individual children and disguising any identifying information (for example the name of their school or a school uniform with a logo)

 

• making sure children, their parents and carers understand how images of children will be securely stored and for how long (including how we will control access to the images and their associated information)

 

• reducing the risk of images being copied and used inappropriately by:

 

• avoiding full face and body shots of children taking part in swimming where there may be a heightened risk of images being misused

 

using images of children in appropriate clothing where we can, for example for certificate photos

 

• using images that positively reflect young people’s involvement in the activity.

 

• put a watermark on the images where possible

 

In addition, MSS

 allows only parents and carers who have been granted permission to video, film, or take photographs of children at classes. This policy applies, but is not limited to, parents and carers using devices including camera phones, cameras, video cameras, and GoPros. 

 

If photos, videos are taken and permission from MSS gained it is essential that:

1.  All parents and carers within a class must be in agreement and have given consent for photographs and/or video footage to be taken and must not be shared on social media without consent being gained.

2. It is also recommended that people check the privacy settings of their social media account to understand who else will be able to view any images they share.

 

 

 Each swimming pool has its own photographic/video policy.  Where a swimming pool has a policy in place this should be followed, notwithstanding the requirements contained in this policy.

At MSS we do occasionally hire outside photographers, we will inform children, their parents and carers that a photographer will be at the event and ensure they have given written consent to images which feature their child being taken and shared.  We will also:

• provide the photographer with a clear brief about appropriate content and behaviour

 • not allow the photographer to have unsupervised access to children

• not allow the photographer to carry out sessions outside the event or at a child’s home

• report concerns regarding inappropriate or intrusive photography following our child protection policies

 

 

If consent to take photographs is not given If children, parents and/or carers do not consent to photographs being taken, we will respect their wishes. We will agree in advance how they would like to be identified so the photographer knows not to take pictures of them and ensure this is done in a way that does not single out the child or make them feel isolated. We will never exclude a child from an activity because we do not have consent to take their photograph.

 

Storing images

 

We will store photographs and videos of children securely, in accordance with our safeguarding policy and data protection law.

 

We will keep electronic images in a protected folder with restricted access, no images will be held on personal mobile phones. Images will be stored for a period of 6 months.

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